1. Apple is the only major company in the personal computer industry which makes "the whole widget". They control the creation, design and production of the hardware and the operating system of their units. This allows a high level of continuity within a network, so that the range of legacy to current versions of equipment and OS will operate together and can be supported with less effort (time equals money).
2. Tech support is notoriously lacking in the educational system, due to being able to afford qualified personnel and keeping them employed in the district. Tech support is also expensive, and becomes more so when the environment is a "difficult" one (lack of continuity). By using one platform from a major vendor which has the ability to maintain continuity in hardware and OS support (Apple Computer), we can keep a larger number of machines up and running for students on a day to day basis. The job of the school is to educate students, technology is supposed to support and assist in that. If a computer isn't usable, it isn't helping any students.
3. With the advent of the PowerMacintosh G3 and G4 processors the speed of Macintosh computers has surpassed that of comparably rated Intel processors and provide a lower Total Cost of Ownership (TOC). Similarly rated (Mhz) and featured computers from other major Wintel manufacturers are more expensive initially and for TOC.
4. Versatility. Using software solutions such as Virtual PC from Connectix, the PowerPC Macintosh computers can run DOS, Windows 3.x, Windows 95,98 and Windows NT/2000 operating systems (and now RedHat Linux is officially supported) as well as associated software for those operating systems. Piedra Vista currently uses Virtual PC to allow Windows software to be used by students when needed. This, in essence, means that every Apple computer we own is actually two machines in one.
5. The built-in remote management capability of the new Apple operating system (OS 9 with Network Administration) and the low cost of the original Apple Network Administration Toolkit (ANAT, with At Ease security software) make remote management of the Apple OS incredibly easy, inexpensive (especially compared to equivalent Windows remote management software), and powerful in the hands of the network administrator. Setting up a network of machines, or just initializing and setting up a new machine on an existing network, is a quick and predominantly "hands off" process.

External Data Resources:

• In depth report on technical support issues by Steven M. Kolins, Technology
  Specialist, Alamance-Burlington Schools.

  This report has many resources hyperlinked within it. Government reports, independant reports, statistics from around the nation related to educational tech support issues. An excellent starting point for understanding the educational needs of technology support, and vice versa.

• The Dual Platform Debate (links to good articles)

  Dual Platform Issues: a running series This is a running series initiated with a request from an educator for feedback from the educational and business communities concerning the use of multiple platforms. These articles do not necessarily encourage a single platform, but they discuss the advantages and disadvantages of many platforms. (MacCentral.com)

  Dual Platform Issues Part 1: the total cost of ownership (MacCentral.com)

  Dual Platform Issues: Mac consistency makes life easier (MacCentral.com)

  Dual Platform Issues: children are power users (MacCentral.com)

  Macs Shine In Total Cost Of Ownership (Applelinks.com)

  The Mac vs. Windows Debate (Another school)

• Just the Facts

  Information from several sources concerning the decision to use Apple Computers in the educational environment.

• Adult Reasons Why Educators Should Continue to Embrace Macintosh by Michael J. Johson, Ph.D.

  'As Deputy Superintendent for Instruction and Technology of a large suburban school district that has spent $8 million dollars on computers in the last four years, I have an obligation to remain as objective as possible. There is just too much at stake to let previous bias interfere with being able to see current circumstances. What follows is what I discovered and concluded from my personal research into the platform issue over the course of the past six months.'

• Understanding the TOC (Total Cost of Ownership) of integrating technology in schools.

  A white paper by IDC which covers the TOC of technology in education. A PDF version is also available, you will need Acrobat Reader.

• MacKiDo report on the Return On Investments between the Macintosh and Windows platforms.

  "This benchmark supersedes a common but misleading bench-mark: cost-of-ownership. An ROI benchmark correlates the cost of ownership and productivity of media producers to revenue and profit. Detailed ROI analysis reveals that a Macintosh-using creative professional produces $26,441 more annual revenue and $14,488 more net profit (per person) than a Windows user of comparable skill engaged in similar work."

• Indeed... are Macs important? (macopinion.com)

  "And when you get down to it, there's the thing that makes Apple important - leading the way with new ideas - even if they're not Apple's ideas, and more, taking the risk with those new ideas."

• Macintosh Myths Do not skip this link!

  This is an area which needs to be visited by everyone, Macintosh or Windows proponent. The main problems surrounding the issue of which platform is "best" are due to incorrect assumptions and concepts about both platforms. We are not trying to establish which platform is "best", that is a futile and unnecessary effort as we are only looking for the best platform for our specific needs. See the Internal Data Resources information below to see what the specific issues of our schools and district are.

  Macintosh Myths: from MacKiDo.com (all links go to www.MacKiDo.com)

  • When to buy a PC?
  • Is Apple the BMW of Computers?
  • PCs and Ice Cream -- details of choice.
  • PCs and Clones
  • Mac Emulators for the PC -- are they as good as a Mac, or close to the quality of PC emulators for the Mac

  Windows is as good as a Mac

  • Advertising is the difference between Apple and Wintel
  • MacOS has evolved less than Windows
  • PC's are more Popular (Popular or Best?)
  • Macs shouldn't be used in education because the business world uses PC's
  • Macs cost more to upgrade
  • Apple has been copying Microsoft (who innovates)

  Apple/Mac may go out of business any day now

  • Apples Sales/Market share is declining
  • Graphs and Quotes of Apples demise
  • Mac Development
  • Developers are leaving the Mac
  • Copland (MacOS 8) was a failure

  Macs cost more than PC's

  • Initial Costs
  • Installation
  • Productivity
  • Maintenance
  • Switching to PC's saves money      

  Macs don't have enough software

  • Mac Software Distribution
  • Macs get their software later

  PC's are more Powerful

  • Macs aren't as expandable as PC's
  • Macs aren't as "Open" as PC's
  • Macs don't have enough Operating Systems
  • Macs don't have enough Clone Makers
     
  • PC's are faster
  • Understanding Performance
  • Perceived Performance
  • Processors (not just MHz)
  • What's the difference between RISC and CISC?
  • CPU Performance (Benchmarks)
  • MMX means something
  • Next Years Pentiums will be faster than the PPC's
  • I/O Subsystems
  • Hard Drive
     
  • Macs crash more than PC's
  • Macs don't have memory protection
  • PC's have Plug&Play
     
  • Macs don't have MT (Multi-Tasking)
  • Macs MultiTasking doesn't work well enough
  • Macs don't have MP (Multi-Processing)
  • Macs don't have a CLI (Command Line Interface)
  • Macs have too much emulation

  Other 

  • Interface: Macs stole its UI from Xerox (MS didn't steal its UI from the Mac) 
  • Hardware and Software- Teach the technologies, to better understand the arguments / points.

• CEO Forum’s Interactive School Technology and Readiness (STaR) Chart

  A self-assessment tool designed to provide schools with the information they need to better integrate technology into their educational process. How did we do? Here are the results from a recent questionaire...

  Piedra Vista High School (1998-1999 School Year)
  Farmington Municipal Schools

  1. Hardware: Target Tech
  2. Connectivity: Target Tech
  3. Content: Target Tech
  4. Professional Development: Mid Tech
  5. Integration and Use: High Tech

  Based on an average of your responses, your school is at the High Tech level.

  ---

  High Tech Educational Benefits:
  • Improve higher-order thinking and research skills
  • Greater information resources available for research and education from Internet and CD-ROM
  • Most students/teachers able to communicate with parents, experts, other students and teachers outside the school

 

Internal Data Resources:

 

The Technology mission of the Farmington Municipal School District is to incorporate technology in the educational program so that the district will:

 

1. Improve learning and student achievement.
2. Prepare students to proficiently use the tools of technology.
3. Use technology successfully to enhance instruction in all curricular areas.
4. Prepare today’s students for post-secondary education, a competitive work place and life experiences.
5. Communicate effectively and efficiently with staff, parents, business, and the community.
6. Keep staff trained in the use of current technology.
7. Provide technology to all students equitably.
8. Perform job-related tasks efficiently and effectively.
9. Provide an accessible storage, retrieval, and data distribution system.
10. Meet community and business needs.
11. Use technology wisely.
12. Make sound decisions on technology purchases.
13. Access information locally, nationally, and internationally.

At this point, we refer back now to the issues brought up with the external data resources about the Macintosh platform and attempt to combine that with the goals and resources of the district. In order to maintain our current level of technology, and to provide the ability to keep up with growth; we need to have the continuity, ease of networking, ease of use/training, versatility, support, ease of technical support and power of Macintosh computers.

Last update Friday, January 11, 2008.